Page 1565 - Week 04 - Thursday, 25 March 2010
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This report is riddled with criticism of the Stanhope Labor government, particularly TAMS. Page 62:
The allocation of corporate overheads is further clouded by a lack of transparency as to what services these allocations are actually seeking to recover.
The recommendation:
Once an accurate and transparent understanding of corporate overhead usage is obtained, the Department will be able to make informed decisions ….
They cannot do so at the moment. They are unable to make these decisions because they do not have the information, because they are not transparent. It continues:
This arrangement will address the lack of transparency that currently exists reoccurring in future years.
Page 72, the recommendation:
This will assist with the transparency of the cost of service provision and ensure the right accountabilities for managing that cost.
This is a scathing report and it is understandable that the government did not want to release it. What government with such a track record would want to release a document like this? Fortunately, through the opposition’s pressure, it was finally released.
The document I have just quoted from was not just a rundown of issues that have occurred overnight in TAMS. There are systemic cultural problems in TAMS which go to the very MPI about open, honest and accountable government. What we have seen under the Stanhope Labor government is an end to open government.
Let us not forget that it was the Labor Party that scrapped the state of the territory report. In 1999 Kate Carnell introduced the state of the territory report which reported annually to the people of Canberra on the ACT government’s performance on social and community issues. I think it came from ACTCOSS, who made a recommendation that it should be done. What did this Chief Minister do when he took power? He scrapped the state of the territory report.
What about the state of the environment report? I am sure that is something near and dear to Madam Assistant Speaker and her particular interests and concerns. The purpose of the state of the environment report was to provide decision makers and the public with a current condition report on the environment. For years it was not issued.
There are also the capital works reports. I think most people who listen to commercial radio would be hearing advertisements paid for by the government about all the great things they are doing in capital works. I believe even in the CityNews a couple of weeks ago they had a full-page ad which bragged about their capital works. You tell
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